Candidate Qualifying

Candidate qualification for Mayor

Candidates for Mayor shall be residents of the City and shall have continuously resided in the City for a minimum of one (1) year immediately preceding the date of qualifying and shall be electors therein. Additionally, candidates for the office of Mayor shall:

• Pay the State election assessment fee in the amount of $970.00; 
• (1) Possess the qualifications requisite to an elector at a general state election;
• (2) Have resided within the city at least one year prior to qualifying for the office;
• (3) Be required to maintain an actual and real residence for the duration of his/her term of office in the city;
• (4) Have been registered by the city registration books that have been prescribed by ordinance;
• (5) Be a qualified elector of the city as set forth in section 4 of the Charter of the city; and
• (6) Shall:

          a. Pay a City qualification fee in the amount of $100.00;    
          b. Follow the petition process in lieu of a qualification fee provided below; or 
          c. Pay a City of Miami qualification fee in the amount of $100.00 and follow the petition process in lieu of a qualification fee provided below.    

Candidate qualification for City Commissioner

Candidates for the City Commission shall have continuously resided within the District boundaries in effect at the time of qualifying for a minimum of one (1) year immediately preceding the date of qualifying and shall be electors in that District, and shall maintain residence in that district for the duration of their term in office. Additionally, candidates for the office of Commissioner shall:

•  Pay the State Election Assessment Fee in the amount of $582.00; 
• (1) Possess the qualifications requisite to an elector at a general state election;
• (2) Have resided, within the city for at least one year prior to qualifying;
• (3) Have resided within the district they wish to represent for at least one year prior to qualifying;
• (4) Be required to maintain an actual and real residence for the duration of their term in the city and in their district;
• (5) Have been registered by the city registration books that have been prescribed by ordinance;
• (6) Be a qualified elector of the city as set forth in section 4 of the Charter of the city; and
• (7) Shall:

          a. Pay a City of Miami qualification fee in the amount of $100.00;     
          b. Follow the petition process in lieu of a qualification fee provided below; or 
          c. Pay a City of Miami qualification fee in the amount of $100.00 and follow the petition process in lieu of a qualification fee provided below.

(c) Candidates for nomination and election to the office of commissioner or mayor shall pay the required qualification fee, or follow the petition process in lieu of a qualification fee.

IMPORTANT - Candidates qualifying by petition process are required to pay the State Election Assessment Fee. (For the Office of the Mayor, the State Election Assessment Fee is $970.00. For the Office of Commissioner, the State Election Assessment Fee is $582.) 

Candidate Qualifying Dates and Time

WHAT:      Candidate Qualifying for Mayor and Commissioner Districts 3 and 5 for the November 4, 2025 General Municipal Election

WHEN:      September 5, 2025 through September 20, 2025

• September 5, 2025 to September 19, 2025 (Monday to Friday) - 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

• September 20, 2025 (Saturday) - 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

WHERE:    Miami City Hall - Office of the City Clerk: 3500 Pan American Drive, Miami, FL 33133

Feel free to contact the Office of the City Clerk at (305) 250-5361 to schedule an appointment to qualify.

To Schedule an Appointment to Qualify

It is respectfully requested that all prospective candidates call, in advance, in order to set up an appointment for qualifying as a candidate. Appointments can be made by:

• Calling the Office of the City Clerk at 305-250-5361 (TTY users may call via the Florida Relay Service by dialing 711)
• Emailing the Office of the City Clerk at City-Campaigns@miamigov.com

Qualifying Forms and Affidavits 

Candidates shall file his or her qualification documents, and pay the qualifying fee, which shall consist of the City qualifying fee and state election assessment fee, with the City Clerk during the qualifying period. 

The following documents are REQUIRED to qualify as a candidate: (Note: Forms may be updated prior to qualifying period for the November 2025 General Municipal Election)

1) Form DS-DE 9 - Appointment of Campaign Treasurer and Designation of Campaign Depository (09/2023)
2) Form DS-DE 84 - Statement of Candidate (05/2011)
3) Affidavit of Candidate (2024) - (MUST be notarized by City Clerk or Deputy Clerk) - Coming Soon
4) Form DS-DE 302NP - Candidate Oath (10/2023)
5) *Form 1 Statement of Financial Interest (must be completed online via Florida Commission on Ethics Electronic Financial Disclosure Management System - EFDMS)
     • How to create an account and log into EFDMS
     • Form 1 Instructions

*NOTE:
*Candidate(s) that are currently holding office (incumbent) can submit the "Verification or Receipt of Filing" for the Form 6 Full and Public Disclosure (if already filed) or the Form 1 - Statement of Financial Interest. 
*Non-incumbent candidate(s) must complete their Form 1 disclosure, in EFDMS. However, once they are finished with their disclosure, they must sign (digitally), print, and file the form with the qualifying officer (City Clerk). The form will have a watermark on it that reads “For Qualifying Purposes Only.”

The following documents are OPTIONAL to qualify as a candidate:

1) City of Miami Loyalty Oath(PDF, 117KB) (City Clerk Office can notarize)
2) Declaration and First Amendment Waiver for Candidates Who Agree to Comply with the Voluntary Statement of Fair Campaign Practices 

NOTE: Bring completed fillable forms and a copy of the digitally filed Financial Disclosure Form (Form 1 or Form 6), government issued ID, voter information card, and supporting residency documents to your qualifying appointment.
City qualifying fee and State election assessment fee MUST be paid by a check drawn on the candidate's campaign account and signed by the campaign treasurer or deputy treasurer.

Candidate Qualifying Fees (City and State)

1- City of Miami Qualifying Fee

The City of Miami's qualifying fee for the Offices of Mayor and Commissioner is $100.

Pursuant to City of Miami Code Sec. 16-7 - Any person seeking to run for the office of mayor or as a city commissioner who is unable to pay the City of Miami's qualification fee without imposing an undue burden on personal resources or on resources otherwise available to him or her shall, upon written certification of such inability given under oath to the City Clerk, be exempt from paying the City's qualification fee.

2- State Election Assessment Fee: 

Pursuant to Florida Statutes 99.093, each person seeking to qualify for nomination or election to a municipal office shall pay, at the time of qualifying for office, an election assessment. The election assessment shall be an amount equal to one percent of the annual salary of the office sought.

State Assessment Fee:

• Mayor: $970.00 (Annual salary is $97,000)

• Commissioner: $582.00 (Annual salary $58,200)

IMPORTANT - Candidates qualifying by petition process are required to pay the State Election Assessment Fee. The City Qualifying Fee and State Election Assessment Fee MUST be paid by a check drawn on the candidate's campaign account. The check from the campaign account is to be made payable to the City of Miami for the total amount due. Any person seeking to qualify for election who is unable to pay the State Election Assessment Fee without imposing an undue burden on personal resources or on resources otherwise available to him or her shall, upon written certification of such inability given under oath to the City Clerk, be exempt from paying the State Election Assessment Fee (see Section 99.093 (2) Florida Statutes). An Affidavit of Financial Hardship for municipal candidates can be found on the Office of the City Clerk's website under the election section titled "Election Forms, Handbooks and Guides."

Qualifying by Petition in Lieu of Paying Municipal Qualifying Fee

The petition process in lieu of qualification fee may be used by City of Miami candidates instead of paying the $100 qualification fee.

Before circulating any petitions, all candidates must file form DS-DE 9 Appointment of Campaign Treasurer and Designation of Campaign Depository for Candidates with the Office of the City Clerk.  Once this form has been filed candidates may begin circulating petitions using form DS-DE 104 Candidate Petition.

Signed petitions representing at least one percent (1%) of the geographical area of the office being sought, must be submitted before noon of the 28th day preceding the first day of the qualifying period for the office being sought to the Office of the City Clerk.  Petitions received before the deadline will be delivered to the Miami-Dade Elections Department to determine if the petitions contain the required number of qualified and registered voters for the office being sought.

At the time that petitions are submitted to the Office of the City Clerk, the candidate must pay in advance the sum of 10 cents for each signature checked or the actual cost for checking such signature, whichever is less. This fee must be paid by a check drawn on the candidate's campaign account. If a candidate cannot pay the aforementioned charge without imposing an undue burden on personal resources or upon the resources otherwise available to the candidate, the candidate shall upon written certification of such inability given under oath (form DS-DE 19A) to the City Clerk, be entitled to have the signatures verified at no charge.

No later than the 7^th day before the first day of the qualifying period, the City Clerk shall determine whether the required number of petitions has been obtained and shall notify the candidate. 

Required number of petitions for the Offices of the Mayor and Commissioner for Districts 3 and 5:

Mayor     - 2,048 petitions
District 3 -   350 petitions 
District 5 -   441 petitions

For more information regarding the process for collecting candidate petitions, please refer to the Florida Division of Elections Candidate Petition 2024 Handbook.

IMPORTANT - Candidates qualifying by petition process are still required to pay the State Election Assessment Fee. The State Election Assessment Fee MUST be paid by a check drawn on the candidate's campaign account. The check from the campaign account is to be made payable to the City of Miami for the total amount due. Any person seeking to qualify for election who is unable to pay the State Election Assessment Fee without imposing an undue burden on personal resources or on resources otherwise available to him or her shall, upon written certification of such inability given under oath to the City Clerk, be exempt from paying the State Election Assessment Fee (see Section 99.093 (2) Florida Statutes). An Affidavit of Financial Hardship for municipal candidates can be found on the Office of the City Clerk's website under the election section titled "Election Forms, Handbooks and Guides."